Gheuett
New Member
Hi All,
I am building a rainwater irrigation system that uses a Harbor Freight 1HP Shallow Well Pump to pump rainwater from above ground storage containers that feed into the crawlspace where the pump is located.
The problem I have is the pump cycles up to around 50 PSI and shuts down for about 2 seconds then powers back up. It does this whether or not water is flowing.
Right now, I have one outside spigot connected to the discharge side of the pump. There is a check valve on the discharge side but there isn't one on the intake side. There is a sediment filter on the intake. The pump sits lower than the source so as I understand, one is not needed. There are no leaks in the system.
I have been in touch with Harbor Freight Tech support and here are the recommendations I have tried:
* One suggestion was to reduce the tank pressure. I originally pumped the tank to 28 PSI as recommended. One Tech suggested dropping it because my discharge PVC is only about 7' total right now. See PIC. Before I lowered the pressure, the tank made a sound that resembled a high pitched Harley when you turned off the pump. That has pretty much gone away as I dropped the pressure. Even with the reduced pressure (now down to about 10 PSI) the cycling has not changed.
* The pressure tank appears to be holding its pressure so there don't appear to be any leaks there.
* Adjust the pressure switch. I have tried adjusting both the large and small spring settings and I've managed to get the cycle to stretch just slightly longer but it still is a matter of 2-3 seconds.
I could understand the pump cycling when water is running through but when the spigot is closed, I would think it should pump up to 50 PSI and then stop until something changes such as opening a spigot.
I'm out of ideas. The pump does work well when hooked to a sprinkler etc. I'm just concerned that the frequent cycling can't be good in the long run. Appreciate any suggestions or ideas of where I might try. I can post additional pictures if needed.
Thanks!!
Gib
I am building a rainwater irrigation system that uses a Harbor Freight 1HP Shallow Well Pump to pump rainwater from above ground storage containers that feed into the crawlspace where the pump is located.
The problem I have is the pump cycles up to around 50 PSI and shuts down for about 2 seconds then powers back up. It does this whether or not water is flowing.
Right now, I have one outside spigot connected to the discharge side of the pump. There is a check valve on the discharge side but there isn't one on the intake side. There is a sediment filter on the intake. The pump sits lower than the source so as I understand, one is not needed. There are no leaks in the system.
I have been in touch with Harbor Freight Tech support and here are the recommendations I have tried:
* One suggestion was to reduce the tank pressure. I originally pumped the tank to 28 PSI as recommended. One Tech suggested dropping it because my discharge PVC is only about 7' total right now. See PIC. Before I lowered the pressure, the tank made a sound that resembled a high pitched Harley when you turned off the pump. That has pretty much gone away as I dropped the pressure. Even with the reduced pressure (now down to about 10 PSI) the cycling has not changed.
* The pressure tank appears to be holding its pressure so there don't appear to be any leaks there.
* Adjust the pressure switch. I have tried adjusting both the large and small spring settings and I've managed to get the cycle to stretch just slightly longer but it still is a matter of 2-3 seconds.
I could understand the pump cycling when water is running through but when the spigot is closed, I would think it should pump up to 50 PSI and then stop until something changes such as opening a spigot.
I'm out of ideas. The pump does work well when hooked to a sprinkler etc. I'm just concerned that the frequent cycling can't be good in the long run. Appreciate any suggestions or ideas of where I might try. I can post additional pictures if needed.
Thanks!!
Gib